


#1 Crush

by LADY_LIQUORICE



Category: Metal Gear
Genre: Dead Dove: Do Not Eat, Dream Sex, Dubious Consent, Frottage, Gaslighting, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Wet Dream
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-15
Updated: 2020-06-15
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:02:16
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,248
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24743533
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LADY_LIQUORICE/pseuds/LADY_LIQUORICE
Summary: Maybe it wasn’t real, but it did feel damn good.
Relationships: Liquid Snake/Psycho Mantis
Comments: 4
Kudos: 20





	#1 Crush

**Author's Note:**

> Please comment if you like :)

Mantis woke with a start to the uncomfortable sensation of fingers digging into his side.  
  
“ _Eli_?” It was not more than a whisper.  
  
Bleary-eyed, he turned his head and tried to make out the other boy’s silhouette behind him, blinking hard to get adjusted to the darkness of the room.  
  
Eli was breathing raggedly, grabbing onto Mantis as if for dear life but there was _no_ reaction – not as Mantis raised his voice a little nor when he forcefully tried to push his presence into Eli’s mind to gauge what was going on.  
  
Worried, Mantis rolled over fully, struggling in Eli’s grip, pressing two sweaty fingers against the side of Eli’s face. Eli was frowning in his sleep, so seemingly distraught; Mantis could tell as he studied his restless features – though he found himself surprised by the fact that Eli wasn’t coming down from one of those violent nightmares that tended to make him prone to tossing and turning, even going so far as to physically lash out at Mantis in frightful aggression.  
  
Eli’s lips were moving, forming silent words that were quite difficult to follow, but the thick fog surrounding his mind was not easy to break through either – Mantis was tired and anxious, unsure on how to interpret this huge and strange emotion pushed onto him.  
  
Gently he tried to pry Eli’s grip off him, gathering the other’s hands into his own and kicking off the heavy blanket they had been huddling under. Despite the lack of proper heating in their cheap little hotel room the sheer warmth that came off Eli’s tense frame made Mantis want to pull off his shirt and sit next to the open window, fanning air to himself as he would idly watch his friend’s struggle from afar.  
  
But Eli seemed as if he was suffering, clinging closer to Mantis, feverish face pressing against his neck – Mantis couldn’t just leave him like this; alone with that dreadful pressure in his mind.  
  
“Eli, _please_.” Mantis tried again. “Let me in.”  
  
Grabbing tightly onto a fleeting thought, a mention of himself in the mess in front of him, Mantis finally managed to pull through. Now, it wasn’t difficult to rearrange Eli’s disorderly mind, his aching dream – neatly Mantis dug his way through, following that strange emotion to track down its source.  
  
Strangely enough, Mantis felt as if Eli’s subconscious was actively trying to sabotage his mind’s infiltration – he was used to depending on their bond, those vague strings of pain and obsession that connected them. In some sense, it almost seemed as if his friend was desperately trying to keep him out of his–  
  
Oh. _Oh.  
_  
Instinctively Mantis drew back, shame and discomfort creeping up his neck as he attempted to move further away from Eli – of course _this_ wasn’t meant for him, none of Eli’s dreams were but in a way he felt a sort of possessive ownership over everything that was so perfectly broadcasted into his own head.  
  
This however was different, Mantis _knew.  
  
_Eli had been pushing for more and more privacy lately; where they had been attached at the hip – mentally _and_ physically – when they were younger, now that they had passed the brink of adolescence some things simply had changed. They rarely slept together like this anymore too, Mantis too painfully aware of his own body in such a close proximity to Eli – but it had been so, _so_ cold the night before.  
  
It wasn't fair, the way that Eli held onto him and pulled at Mantis in his sleep. And now that he finally had realised what exactly was going on, Mantis bit his lip anxiously as he felt Eli's erection digging into his thigh.

No, it wasn't Eli's fault – somewhere in the back of his mind Mantis knew that well enough – maybe it even was his own, him being too shy and dismissive, that old ingrained fear of closeness still very much raw.

"Please." He mumbled, trying not to cry as Eli moved his hips against him again and again

This wasn't a secret, it was normal. Eli was normal, acting and developing as any boy his age might do.

But Mantis, he was different – and not in a good way. His body all wrong, too skinny; too round in other places and too shameful to ever be seen by anyone else again.

But that didn't deter Eli, nor did it change his primal, innocent fantasies.

"Mantis—" Eli's breath was hot against his cheek. "'S okay..."

Clenching his fists Mantis let himself be enveloped, slipping into the surreal comfort of Eli's dream.  
  
Vision blurry, he found himself in a nondescript room with doors leading to empty hallways to nowhere, Eli's mind not having gone further than the initial confines of the scene.

And why would it? The warm light, the smell of wood, the softness of blankets – all comfortable sensations that filled Mantis' perception as he stared down at his own half-naked body through Eli's eyes.

"Please," the other him choked. "Touch me–"

Eli's idea of what he looked like naked wasn't too far from reality, which made Mantis shiver in discomfort – he never had looked at his body in the mirror, but from what he could tell the lithe expanse of pale, freckled skin lined by fading scars below him was true to life. The only obvious mistake was the lack of a mask.

The other ones' shirt was riding up just above the chest and he, the real Mantis felt like crying as Eli leaned forward to caress the barely noticeable swell of his breast.

But lost in the softness of the touch Mantis almost didn’t notice how the other him spread his legs, drawing Eli closer until he moved his hands – Eli’s hands – to slip under the hem of the other’s underwear.  
  
“You’re so pretty...” Eli said and Mantis felt his lips moving along to those false words.  
  
Below him, that fake version of himself stretched idly in the shadow of all the things that Eli imagined him to be – pretty, timid, gentle, comfortable, willing.  
  
But Mantis was none of those things, inside him only a raging, scared child – defensive at the slightest inconvenience, pulling in on itself and hiding away.  
  
He couldn’t tell if he was driven by jealousy or by anger, but he settled unnoticed into that ideal version of himself, suddenly with Eli above him, gentle smile making Mantis turn his new, pretty face away.  
  
Eli reached down then, touched him in ways he hadn’t even touched himself yet – rough fingers gently pulling off his underwear, stroking, searching for arousal.  
  
Mantis tried to resist, wanting nothing more than to press his thighs together, trapping Eli and effectively keeping him from reaching further – but he _didn’t_ and bit his lip, nails digging into the sheets as Eli drew his thumb through the greedy, wet heat between his legs.  
  
Then Eli pulled back slightly, unbuttoned his pants and drew out his hard dick. Mantis had seen it before – of _course_ he had, Eli wasn’t exactly modest when it came to running around naked, or bothering to hide the fact that he liked to masturbate to seedy, dirty magazines when Mantis was asleep.  
  
He barely had a second to be terrified when, to his surprise, all Eli did was rub his dick against him – it still made him want to gag because it was _wet_ and _noisy_ but it also felt good, good enough for Mantis to let out a pathetic groan.  
  
Eli, confident and driven by instinct, leaned forward to kiss Mantis’ chest, biting and sucking, moving up to his neck and jaw and eventually drawing Mantis’ bottom lip between his teeth.  
  
Mantis hated every second of it – the way Eli just took over the situation, the way he imagined Mantis to be and the fact that it was so _wrong_ , so untrue yet Mantis couldn’t help but wonder what would be if it wasn’t.  
  
“No–“ He managed to push off Eli slightly. “Stop it!”  
  
Eli did, clearly confused because things weren’t lining up as they should have – it was his dream after all. Mantis watched warily as the room around them began to flicker, Eli’s sluggish subconscious slowly catching up with his shameless deception.  
  
Desperate to salvage the situation Mantis gave Eli a psychic shove and crawled into his lap, effectively reversing their positions.  
  
“Mantis–?!”  
  
Mantis shushed him, feeling eerily disconnected, though maybe that was because he was merely borrowing this fake body, in a fake scenario, hidden away at the far end of Eli’s degenerate little mind.  
  
“It’s alright, you can put it in.” He heard himself say, unsure if it was the other or himself speaking.  
  
Eli stared, amazed and in shock at the sheer brazen lewdness of Mantis’ change of demeanour. But he did let his hands wander to the other’s narrow hips, pushing up against him, aching cock comfortably nestled between Mantis’ labia, dragging up and down against that swollen spot that sent shivers of pleasure up Mantis’ abdomen.  
  
“You’re gross, Eli.” Mantis whispered bitterly, grinding down against Eli, watching his friend’s face. “You shouldn’t think about me like this, you know I can’t hide from you.”  
  
Eli, eyes wide and mouth agape, shook his head at him, unable to stifle his moans.  
  
“I only– Mantis what’s gotten into y-you?”  
  
Of course, Eli didn’t know this was a dream and now found himself terribly confused by this error in the soft and innocent character he had assigned Mantis.  
  
Mantis felt like throwing up – overwhelmed, uncomfortable and _ecstatic_ , because even if Eli had just _convinced_ himself that Mantis was more than a scrawny ugly kid, a bothersome burden, no; desirable even – it still felt disgustingly good to be wanted.  
  
If only Eli knew how despicable he really was, despite their minds being linked, despite Eli haven woken from the dark and reprehensible depths of Mantis own nightmares, being faced with all his sins and faults, he just never would be able to fathom the true hideousness of the person closest to him.  
  
Kissing Eli again a few more times, clumsily, awkwardly and not without their teeth clacking together – Mantis finally succumbed to the constant friction and felt felt a red-hot wave of gratification wash over him.  
  
Maybe it wasn’t real, but it did feel damn good.  
  
His mind a bit clearer, he pushed himself on his knees and ungainly grabbed at Eli’s dick, exploring it with his fingers, tugging at the burning skin and pressing his finger against the slit just like Eli had done to him.  
  
Eli howled like an animal, more from pain than pleasure and Mantis couldn’t fault him for that when he dragged his nails over the sensitive flesh.  
  
“You’re a coward.” He muttered quietly and lined himself up, pushing down and grimacing at the unexpected resistance. It took a few times to get it in, but finally Eli slipped past that bothersome tightness as Mantis watched his knuckles turn white.  
  
It hurt a lot, a foreign yet familiar pain that Mantis had cast aside, hidden away carefully behind layers and layers of repressed memories, but with each uneven push it became easier. Eli watched him through half-lidded eyes, unable to comprehend the aching display in front of him fully.  
  
Strangely, they found a rhythm through their heartless euphoria and Mantis leaned his body tightly against Eli’s to gather more pressure against the only part of him that made this bearable. He also did try to find solace in the comfort of Eli’s mind, but it was so strangely warped by instinct and lust that it only frightened him more.  
  
Then, as Eli snapped his hips up a few more pitifully times, hands having left bruises on Mantis’ sides, it was finally over when he came, cursing loudly.  
  
In an instant the walls around them folded in like cards, the bed beneath them melted and Mantis exhaustedly watched his own borrowed body disintegrate into the nothingness of Eli’s subconscious.  
  
Back in their hotel room, drenched with cold sweat and a humiliating wetness between his legs, Mantis felt Eli stir behind him. A hand on his shoulder, warm skin against his neck.  
  
It took a few moments, but then Eli rose in shock, aghast by his very own dream.  
  
“ _Mantis_ –“  
  
Trying to slide out of his grasp, Mantis found himself unable to do so, knowing that the other boy was just as sticky and uncomfortable as he was. A simple slave to his instincts.  
  
Eli wrapped his arms around him then, whispering meaningless little apologies that fell on deaf ears, because Mantis knew that the true culprit wore his own skin, be it real or a false one. Eli couldn’t be blamed for craving something more, something more beautiful and complete than him.  
  
Humming, he leaned into the embrace, gently stroking Eli’s hair, grateful that his mask hid away the shameful tears behind the plastic.  
  
“It’s alright.” He whispered softly. “I know you couldn’t help it, you just lost control, didn’t you?”  
  
But oh! Eli wasn’t stupid, a suspicious glint in his eye as he leaned back to study the masked face in front of him, gaze digging much deeper than Mantis was comfortable with.  
  
“You’re right, Mantis.” Eli pressed a firm bite against his neck. “I just couldn’t _help_ it.”  
  
Satisfied with their charade, Mantis fell back against the pillows, pulling Eli with him into their shared dream – a safe little hideout that existed only between them, far away from any dangers; any doubts.


End file.
